𝗢𝗢𝗚𝗢𝗘 𝗗𝗜𝗔𝗠𝗢𝗡𝗗────── k. aren x original character

𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞

it's hard to say that no one noticed that kotoe and kuboyasu were missing.

teruhashi noticed, the teacher noticed, most of the guys (including nendou and kaidou) noticed, and kusuo?

he definitely noticed.

he came prepared, though.

a strange, tugging feeling picks on his heart that morning, and even before kotoe woke up, he had packed his ring into the depth of his uniform pocket. when he noticed kotoe and kuboyasu leaving the classroom together, kusuo did not waste any time in putting it on.

the world became so silent in an instant. no thoughts of fictional revenge plots coming from kaidou, no begging of a ramen god to take over the planet from nendou. kusuo could hear the wind rustling, the summer heat, and the birds chirping.

the silence almost reached the point of it being terrifying—but truly, nothing is more scary than listening to the thoughts of a guy who had a crush on your sister. when they are alone.

so, kusuo let class continue without the star-tennis player nor the new student, just as life continues even with its missing pieces.

kusuo tried to take his mind off the fact that his sister was missing—she probably wasn't—but strange stares were already given to him by practically half the class.

he could basically hear their thoughts, even with the ring on.

so, he hoped that kotoe found a good reason to cover up her absence from the three period between the first and the second lunch break.

kusuo cursed in his mind, tch, and continued to try looking like he was paying attention to whatever the hell the math teacher was saying.

and then, the math teacher exited the classroom. in came the social science teacher, without signs of kotoe.

kusuo is becoming restless.

as soon as the bell to the second lunch rang, he was the first one to stand up. he skillfully dodged the grabby hands of kaidou and nendou—and hairo, also curious on where kotoe was, and slid— no, slammed the door open only to jump on his own feet.

"kusuo!"

kusuo jumped back, staggering as the classroom fell into a dramatized silence.

kotoe was standing on the other side of the doorway, holding a seemingly empty cake box. her cheeks are flushed—due to the heat, kusuo realizes as he studied her face—and her eyebrows furrowed.

"don't look at me like that," kotoe whispered, as kusuo regained his senses and pushed himself and his twin out to the hallway. he grabs the ring on his finger and the quiet burst yet again with loud voices.

"kotoe," his telepathy came to her and he saw kotoe shuddering. "where's kuboyasu?"

he was asking the real and necessary question; she left the classroom with kuboyasu and returned without him?

kusuo scanned the mental voices of the growing crowd on the hallway, ignoring the stares from their classmates, and furrowed his own eyebrows.

kotoe pouted, throwing her gaze out the window.

"i don't know."

kusuo slanted his eyes.

"i really don't!" kotoe raised both her hands, as if defending herself from kusuo's glares. "we were eating the cake, lost track of time, and. . . when we were going to go back, i guess he noticed me panicking. . ."

kotoe's face, now flushed due to embarrassment, shifted.

". . .he's somewhere on campus ground," she muttered.

kusuo said nothing—he watched her face for a bit, noticing how she must had something to hide from him, but looking from the situation? yeah, she definitely had something to hide.

man.

being a psychic sucks.

"i won't ask questions. . ." kusuo finally spoke to her after a moment of taking in her embarrassed state. he should not make this even harder on her. ". . .but the kids in our class will. maybe the teachers too."

"i know, i know."

kotoe sighed, glaring at the box she was holding. kusuo reached out to gently grab it from her grip.

"i'll put that in the recycle bin for you."

kotoe pressed the side of her head against the glass window, nodding. "thanks. . ."

she looks at him, and for a while, their eyes spoke to each other.

"i have practice tonight," kotoe finally said after the silence. "coach wanted me to come early. . . a sports journalist is working on a piece on japanese ITF junior rankings holder. . . "

kusuo nodded. "that's you."

kotoe scoffed. "i'm not the only japanese on the ranking. . ." she rubbed her neck. "i'm a bit tired, though. might sleep on the infirmary bed a bit after school. . ."

kusuo raised an eyebrow, sighing.

"good grief. . ." he closed his eyes, before opening them back up to be greeted with kotoe's grin. "i'll take care of it."